Built in 1929, this was the tallest building in Maryland at the time. Little did the Baltimore Trust Company know about the impending depression when their new state of the art building was completed. Shortly after the depression began, the building switched hands to the government but in the 60′s was sold to the Maryland National Bank. For years the gold top of this building had the letters MN on it to signify the bank. Now that it’s the BoA building, theres little to signify its purpose.
About the arcitecutre. It was supposedly inspired by the Mayans. The heads sticking out above the entrance are Mayan heads. Indeed the building, in Art Deco fashion, is adorned with all manner of deorcations as you proceed from bottom to top.
1 response so far ↓
1 bryanintimonium // Oct 29, 2008 at 7:45 AM
Some notes: The building is predominantly art deco, however it is strongly influenced by Mayan Revival. One of the defining features of buildings of this era is the “set back”. Note how the building becomes progressively narrower as it grows taller. This is not due to structural limitations but because of some of the first zoning regulations that required buildings to provide light and air to the streets below.
The “MN” that once adorned the top of the building were lighted and served as a weather notification system. They changed color to signify impending changes to the weather.
Now you know.
Leave a Comment